MANAMA: Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz landed in Bahrain on Wednesday, the rearmost high- profile politic trip since the countries normalised ties, the Gulf country said.
“ The defence minister, Lieutenant General Abdullah bin Hassan al-Nuaimi, entered Mr Benny Gantz, the minister of defence of the State of Israel, upon his appearance at Bahrain International Airport,” the Bahraini Defence Ministry said.
Gantz, who’s the first Israeli defence minister to ever officially visit the Gulf country, travelled with several top service and security officers, including cortege principal Crewmate David Saar Salama.
“ The aircraft carrying the delegation is the first IAF (Israeli Air Force) aeroplane to land in Bahrain,” the Israeli defence ministry said in a statement.
“ Throughout the visit, the minister is anticipated to conduct meetings with high ranking officers in the Bahraini defence establishment and with the Kingdom’s leadership,” it added.
The visit comes lower than two times after the Gulf country forged politic ties with Israel, getting the fourth Arab nation to do so following close supporter the United Arab Emirates, as well as Egypt and Jordan.
Last time Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid made the first clerical visit to Bahrain, where he inaugurated an delegacy in Manama.
The normalisation between Bahrain and Israel was one of a series of US-brokered agreements known as the Abraham Accords.
The deals infuriated the Palestinians, and broke with decades of Arab League agreement against recognising Israel until it signs a peace agreement establishing a Palestinian state with a capital in east Jerusalem.
The accords were negotiated by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s precursor, Benjamin Netanyahu, who said they would offer Israel new indigenous abettors against Iran and bolster its politic sweats to stop Tehran from acquiring nuclear munitions.
It wasn’t incontinently clear if transnational addresses on Iran’s nuclear programme would be bandied during Gantz’s visit.
